June 13th is the Feast of Saint Anthony of Padua. Fr. David Lenz offers a prayer for the intercession of Saint Anthony of Padua and a blessing for each of you. As he explains at the beginning of this reflection and prayer, God cuts through time and space. Even though he recorded this at the Chapel at Mount St. Francis, Indiana, we are together in God's presence.

Ysleta del Sur Pueblo is a U.S. federally-recognized Native American tribe and sovereign nation. The tribal community is known as "Tigua." The friars have had the privilege of serving Ysleta Mission and the Tigua since 1991.

The Tigua have "La Salida" on June 4, when they go throughout the neighborhood begging for food and money in preparation for the Feast of St. Anthony on June 13. Yesterday at 5:30 am, the friars traveled by bus to the Mission where they gathered at the homes of the Mayordomos for breakfast and preparation of the four statues of St. Anthony that were to be carried out on the Salida. The friars then walked to the Mission Church to celebrate Mass with the Most Reverend Mark Seitz, Bishop of El Paso. After Mass the friars had to head back for a day of meetings, while the Tigua departed in the four directions to seek help for the upcoming feast.

To learn a little more about Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, listen to our Franciscan Voice podcast episode with Fr. Miguel.

Please keep the Chapter delegates in prayer this week as they continue their meetings.

On Friday I got a copy of the 4-minute video which the Zambia TV station showed of our Dedication of the Lecture Auditorium. I wanted to share it with you. Check out the singing of our students. It is a Bemba hymn in thanksgiving after Communion.

The Minister is the first woman to get a doctorate form the Zambian University. She is a dedicated Catholic and outspoken on issues in her ministries. We are looking to her Ministry to be of some assistance to the Boarding School Unit we hope to build.

Open at Holy Cross Retreat Center:

For many people there is a desire for quiet and solitude to listen to God, to listen to our hearts, to rest.

Scripture tells of Jesus and many others taking time in the desert to pray.

On May 20th, about 50 people gathered for the blessing and opening of our new Hermitage at Holy Cross Retreat Center in Mesilla Park, New Mexico. The Hermitage is located on the southeast corner of our property, behind the retreat rooms with a wonderful view of the Organ Mountains.

The title of Our Lady of Consolation, or Mary, Consoler of the Afflicted, comes from the Latin Consolatrix Afflictorum and is the title by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is venerated in Luxembourg. In 1875, a replica of the statue of Our Lady of Consolation in Luxembourg City was brought to Carey, Ohio, and the miraculous procession on May 24 of that year marks the origins of the Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Consolation. Countless pilgrims have visited the shrine since then and have experienced healing and consolation in many ways.

Conventual Franciscan Friars have been the guardians and ministers of the Shrine since 1912 and for that reason the name of Our Lady of Consolation was chosen for our province.

Many blessings to you on this Feast day.

Celebrating Mount St. FrancisA Tradition of Serving Spiritual Needs

The third annual MountFest, an Experience of Kentuckiana, will be held on Saturday, June 2, from 2pm to 8pm, at Mount St. Francis in southern Indiana. Benefiting the Retreat Assistance Fund, this year’s event is dedicated to Br. Bob Baxter OFM Conv. who passed away in March after serving for many years as Director of Retreats at the Mount.

Admission is free, and guests will have a chance to sample food and beverages from the region’s restaurants, wineries, and brewers. Local artists and artisans will exhibit their work, from paintings and pottery to other arts, crafts, and specialty items. The Todd Hildreth Trio and The Wildflower Chronicles will provide live music. And once again, the always-popular Terri’s Treasures features an eclectic array of second-hand and slightly-used articles for sale.

The Franciscan spirit of hospitality is a key ingredient of our retreat centers. Br. Bob, a Conventual Franciscan Friar, founded the Retreat Assistance Fund to ensure that all who seek to take part in the Mount’s retreat offerings may do so, regardless of their financial circumstances.

Over the past few years, the Retreat Assistance Fund has underwritten retreat fees for area high school students, sponsored overnight retreats for homeless people, and helped others who need financial assistance to attend a retreat where they may experience spiritual enrichment and the beauty of the surrounding 400-acre nature sanctuary.

For more than 100 years, Mount St. Francis has served the spiritual needs of the region’s youth and adults. From the beginning, the Franciscan Friars and their neighbors and friends have helped support this work. Starting in the 1920s, an annual picnic helped raise money for the retreat programs. In 2015, the traditional picnic was transformed into a celebration of local culture: MountFest.

Mount St. Francis is located at the junction of US Highway 150 and Paoli Pike in Floyds Knobs.

of the Basilica of St. Francis!

Magnify Your Vocation is presenting a flying indoor tour of the Basilica on Thursday, May 24th. Meet at 5:25 p.m. sharp in the Mount St. Francis Chapel, Mount St. Francis, Indiana. Prayer and dinner with the Friars is included in the FREE event! Magnify Your Vocation is especially for those who are discerning their vocation and who are 16 to 40 years of age.

Mary, Mother of Mercy Custody in Central America

On May 12, 2018, Friars Antonio Sandoval and Pablo Carvajal were ordained to the priesthood. Friars Antonio and Pablo are part of Mary, Mother of Mercy Custody in Central America. Friars Jim Kent and Wayne Hellmann (previous and current Ministers Provincial for Our Lady of Consolation Province) joined in the joyful celebrations. Also present were volunteers from FrancisCorps. FrancisCorps volunteers share their gifts and talents in a year-long, faith based community in the spirit of Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi.

The Toughest Task: Loving Our Enemies as a Path to Peace

Drawing on his experience serving as a chaplain at a Veterans Administration hospital, and looking at current events from a Franciscan perspective, Fr. Ken Bartsch talks about why people choose to drift away from the Church and faith in God. He also considers the recent school shootings and other gun violence, and why loving our enemies is the primary step back toward God.